Alessi's Ark - Time Travel

Alessi's Ark - Time Travel
2011, Bella Union

Alessi Laurent-Marke, AKA Alessi's Ark, left school at the age of sixteen to pursue a career in music, promising her parents she's come back in a year if the music thing didn't work out. Amazingly enough, she signed a major label deal with Virgin Records before her 17th birthday, and went on to record her debut album, Notes From The Treehouse, with producer Mike Mogis (Rilo Kiley). The album did well for Alessi's Ark in England, and she continued to play out extensively, but Alessi's Ark parted ways with Virgin in 2010, opting instead for Indie label Bella Union. One EP later, Alessi's Ark released her Bella Union full length debut, Time Travel, in the Spring of 2010, with a US release in September.

For all of the energy and personality Alessi's Ark brings to the stage, Time Travel is an amazingly passive record. Think Hope Sandoval without the smooth veneer, and this is the musical milieu that Alessi's Ark occupies for much of Time Travel. When she steps out of her protective shell, the artist is engaging. "Blanket" is the highlight of the album, with Alessi Laurent-Marke singing out in a voice strong and clear, showing a passion that is just too absent elsewhere. "The Robot" has a similar energy, and thrives in the quiet environment of the album, but listeners just spend too much time waiting for Alessi's Ark to do something interesting, with too few rewards in the listening.

Rating: 2.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Alessi’s Ark at www.alessisark.com or www.myspace.com/alessisark.

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Megan Barbera - Zig Zag To The Sea

Megan Barbera - Zig Zag To The Sea
2010, Megan Barbera

If you're going to have a conversation about Megan Barbera it's going to start with her voice, which is an idiosyncratic blend of Edie Brickell and Sarah McLachlan.  Barbera's distinctive talent for songwriting is quickly evident, and her maudlin, melodic style evokes thoughts of Hope Sandoval.  This latter is either good or bad, depending on a listener's personal taste.  Barbera writes in imagery and rhyme, but can occasionally lose touch with the listeners at home.  With all of these thoughts in mind, let me introduce you to Barbera's debut album, Zig Zag To The Sea. 

Barbera opens with the mellow Americana/country sound and deep vulnerability of "Anywhere But Here".  In an age of computerized management of vocal quirks, Barbera's plaintive and unadorned vocal performance is a breath of fresh air.  From a songwriting perspective, this is the class of the album; subtle and nuanced without ever losing touch with the reality that lay behind it.  "Can't Love Yourself" is insightful and well-written, although Barbera tries to squeeze too much content into the melody at times.  This effort stands out, as the rushed feel this gives stands starkly at odds with the relaxed and melancholy air of the arrangement.  "Wasted" is a smooth melancholy country number with a hopeful side.  The melody on this tune is simply gorgeous; the sort to recur in your dreams.

"Shallow Well" highlights the comparison to Brickell and McLachlan above.  Barbera's vocal performance is unforgettable, although the song itself is too drawn out and slow for its own good.  Barbera recovers nicely with "A Little Hokey Pokey", a quietly catchy and fun bit of folk n roll that stands out.  Much like its name, Zig Zag To The Sea essentially meanders the rest of the way through pretty and understated songs that fail to make a big impression one way or the other.

Zig Zag To The Sea shows Megan Barbera's strengths and weaknesses as a songwriter and performer in bold lines.  At her best, Barbera is engaging and insightful, but she also appears to still be getting comfortable with herself as a songwriter.  Barbera gets so caught up in her own sense of musical melancholy at times that the she seems to forget the listener.  While artistically honest, Barbera occasionally loses her sense of song craft in the process.  Zig Zag To The Sea shows a lot of promise, but as always, promise comes to fruition with a lot of work.  There's more than enough potential evident on Zig Zag To The Sea to convince listeners to stick around to see how it all turns out for Megan Barbera.

Rating: 2.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more at http://www.meganbarbera.com/ or on Facebook.  Zig Zag To The Sea is available from Amazon.com as a CD or Download.  The album is also available via iTunes.

Kim Taylor - Little Miracle

Kim Taylor - Little Miracle
2010, Kim Taylor

Cincinnati-based singer/songwriter Kim Taylor returned recently with her fourth album, Little Miracle. A stark, stripped down set of folk rock songs, Little Miracle represents Taylor’s most powerful songwriting to date. The album was written and recorded in The Maid’s Room in New York City (a favorite place of Rufus Wainwright) over several days, and has the urgent emotional feel that only that sort of milieu can bring.

Taylor opens with the title track; "Little Miracle" is repetitive and catchy, about as bubblegum as Taylor will allow herself to get. The song has mild commercial appeal but isn't groundbreaking. "Lost And Found" sticks with the repetitive style but does so in a pretty melody and shows off Taylor's unusual voice. "American Child" is intriguing, exploring the dreams of parents affected by war and difficult times. The song might also be interpreted through the eyes of an immigrant family, a theme that's not lost on Taylor later in the album. Taylor delves into the depths of loss and grief on "Anchor Down", casting herself into a sea of emotion for a stark and moving vignette.

"Do You Ever Feel Lonely" intertwines a catchy melody and arrangement with a melancholy mood; an interesting juxtaposition that sounds like something that might come out of a jam session between Sheryl Crow and Bonnie Raitt. Fatalism rules the day in "If I Am Wrong"; where effort is ultimate object but the outcome doesn't seem to matter. Taylor's shining moment comes on "Fruit Of My Labor", a brilliant look at life and dreams through the eyes of a migrant worker. Taylor shows distinct depth as a songwriter here; bring the subject alive in the vibrant color of her words and her presence as a performer. Little Miracle closes with a low key but powerful love song in "Sharp Cutting Wings (Song To A Poet)", showing off more of the impressive songwriting depth that Taylor kept somehow muted through much of the album.

Little Miracle leaves the impression of an artist who is getting better as she continues to write. Taylor starts out on solid footing, but the final two tracks on Little Miracle are the sort of songs songwriters aspire to a handful of times in their careers, much less consecutively on one album. You won't be likely to leave Little Miracle behind anytime soon, but when you do it will be in open anticipation of whatever Taylor graces us with next.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Kim Taylor at http://www.kim-taylor.net/ or on Facebook.  Little Miracle is available on CD from Amazon.com.  Digitial copies are available from iTunes.

Review: The Blue Seeds - The Blue Seeds

The Blue Seeds - The Blue Seeds
2008, L-Abe

Montreal’s The Blue Seeds are led by the eclectic and mystifying voice of Amelie Laflamme who brings to life the songs of songwriter Francois Dufault. The ensemble has a highly unique and catchy sound that can be found on their debut album, The Blue Seeds. Originally released in 2008 in Canada, The Blue Seeds saw an October, 2009 release in the U.S.

The Blue Seeds open with the slinky Barcelona, a song full of longing and desire. Vocalist Amelie Laflamme has an eclectic sound that's something of a cross between Norah Jones and Hope Sandoval, and Dufault's guitar work helps to create a desperate, lost feeling that fuels the song. Outside The Rain Falls has an almost Country feel to it, played in dark minor keys. Laflamme is entrancing, filling out the sound with a voice that wiggles its way inside your brain and sets up camp for a long stay. The dark Country/Americana feel sticks around for Lost Highway, another dark and vaguely disturbing musical landscape fueled by repressed surf guitar. A Killing In Art sounds like a Mazzy Star outtake, both instrumentally and vocally.

On Lost And Delirious, Laflamme gives up her best vocal performance on the album. The song is languorous and is stretched a bit thin here but is otherwise very well done. My Fair Weather Friend takes on a gentle Blues/Rock feel, blended with the nearly ambient vocals The Blue Seeds seem comfortable with. It's a pleasant listen but doesn't really stand out. The same can be said for Black Birds, a song filled with mournful country guitar accents that get a little bogged down in its own pacing. The Blue Seeds say goodnight with the distant and disaffected I Dreamed A Little Dream, a song of emotional division and separation disguised as a hopeful tune.

The Blue Seeds have a distinctive sound that's somewhere between Mazzy Star and The Cowboy Junkies. When everything clicks The Blue Seeds sound glorious in their melancholy, but the energy level flattens out at times and the pacing of the album will lose some listeners. Laflamme has a distinctive voice that is instantly recognizable once you've heard it, and the musicianship is decidedly above average. Take The Blue Seeds for a spin and see how they fit you.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about The Blue Seeds at http://www.theblueseeds.com/ or www.myspace.com/theblueseeds. You can purchase a copy of The Blue Seeds as either a CD or Download from CDBaby.com.

Review: F&M - Every Light Must Fade

F&M - Every Light Must Fade
2008, Shameless Records Canada

Edmonton, Alberta is the home to F&M, a quintet that has grown from power couple Ryan and Becky Anderson. Comparisons will be made to Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Natalie Merchant, Feist and Nick Cave, but don't let the darkness fool you. F&M writes strong music dealing with difficult issues with a positive outlook (or at least the hope for one). Their latest album, Every Light Must Fade, deals with death and loss from the perspective of a life cycle where death means new life or new beginnings. Ryan (vox, guitar) and Becky Anderson (vox, piano, accordion, guitar, cymbeline) are joined by Brian "Miot" Reichert (lead guitar, vox); Chad Andriowski (percussion) and Kevin Anderson (bass). Ryan Anderson claims the band once sucked, and it’s hard to be debate such subjective outlooks, but there are definite highs and lows here.

Every Light Must Fade opens with the title track, a dark and ambling tune acknowledging that the end comes to us all in stark and poetic terms. Ryan and Becky Anderson manage to create some moments of beauty in the darkness, he with his somewhat gruff voice and her ethereal harmonies. Stuttering Boy is our first opportunity to hear Becky Anderson in a lead vocal capacity. Her voice is eclectic and unique and interesting to listen to; ranging from a fluttering and ischemic soprano to a full and warm alto. Lyrically the song is a bit halting and awkward, but the overall effect is a positive one. Bad Advice From A Bad Singer is all about fearing the end; the sort of insecurities most people have about what comes after death, if anything. It's well-written and addresses the issue without taking sides with regard to beliefs.

Becky Anderson shows the more pleasant side of her upper range on Rising To The Moon; a voice that's part Marian Call and part Hope Sandoval. Anderson shines in this dark piece about not getting where you want to be and the inevitability of death/failure/loss. Shy is a repetitive and circular picture of social awkwardness; lyrical paucity and a skittish acceptance of self are at the center of this song, which works on several levels. Industrious displays the lyrical awkwardness that seems to be one of the trademarks of the band; as if thoughts come in halting and difficult leaps. You Will Die is a stark reminder of the obvious, starting with the most story of the most unlikely and most-well known case of all. The repetitive nature of the arrangement is the driving force of the song; given its incessant and semi-urgent quality. Another Closing Number emphasizes the dichotomy of age; how we crave more when we have less and vice versa. It's an examination of human nature in darks and lights that is perhaps the most perceptive and well-written song on the disc. F&M closes out with a hidden track, The Grey Havens, an ethereal, angelic fugue that celebrates one conception of the hereafter.

F&M takes on difficult material on a difficult album in Every Light Must Fade. I can't say I enjoyed the album, yet I somewhat liked it nonetheless. This is a listening experience that makes you uncomfortable and pushes at your buttons. It's messy and dark and buoyant in its own Cimmerian waters. Ryan and Becky Anderson have voices that are distinctive and intriguing, and when they sing together they're at their collective best. Every Light Must Fade is going to be a difficult experience for some; it's not clean and easy to listen to, but it's a robust artistic statement on mortality, done in the fumbling awkward terms in which we tend to address the subject. Are you up for a challenge?

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about F&M at http://www.fandmtheband.com/ or www.myspace.com/fandmtheband. You can purchase a copy of Every Light Must Fade at CDBaby.com. If you like renting your music, you can download it through iTunes.

Review: Jason Yates – Jason Yates

Jason Yates – Jason Yates
2009, Vapor Records
Jason Yates is one of the most respected Hammond B3 players in the business, having played with folks such as Mazzy Star (Fade Into You); Natalie Merchant (Tigerlilly Tour), the 2 PC and Macy Gray. His keyboard skills are undeniable, yet it's always interesting to see how a top-notch instrumentalist transitions to the front-man role either of a band or as a solo singer/songwriter. Yates made that jump with Angeleno, and returns on October 6, 2009 with his self-titled disc, Jason Yates.

Jason Yates opens with My Way Out, a piano-driven rocker that harkens back to an older sound; part Rod Stewart and part Elton John with a bit of Ben Folds added in for seasoning is an apt description of the sound here. You won't be able to resist the desire to pop and sway. Nobody So Far continues in a similar vein, embracing a 1970's singer/songwriter aesthetic with a melancholy (think Wallflowers) look at failed expectations. Yates has an everyman quality to his vocals that puts the listener immediately at ease, and the gentle arrangement is the perfect fit. Paper Tents finds Yates engaging in a comfortable bit of Americana with ties back into the late-1960's, early 1970's Folk/Rock scene. It's a pleasant listen.

I Run is a somnolent little tune with a melancholy air and a decent melody. Written either from the depths of depression or the bounds of sleep, I Run flows slowly like a mountain. To Chance has the same sort of classic sway to it heard on My Way Out. It's a song of regret about a relationship that didn't end up where Yates might have hoped. The arrangement is solid has an instantly likeable quality to it. Expect this to be a concert favorite. Sing For You closes out Jason Yates on a familiar sleepy note; a love song for the lovelorn and weary.

The tempo and affect on Jason Yates was a bit much for my taste in the end. As slow and relentless as a river, Yates pours out the waterlogged contents of his heart in songs that rarely vary in approach, sound or style. What's charming at two or three songs becomes wearisome well before the ninth and final song concludes the cycle. Jason Yates might be the theoretical love child of Leonard Cohen and Hope Sandoval, or perhaps he's just a guy who writes sad songs; either way he'll find fans, but you really have to be in the right frame of mind for this one.

Rating: 2.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Jason Yates at www.myspace.com/jasonyatesofficial. Jason Yates will be released on October 6, 2009; you can pre-order a copy through Amazon.com.

Review: Speck Mountain - Some Sweet Relief

Speck Mountain – Some Sweet Relief
2009, Carrot Top Records

Mellow spunk is the word I would choose for Marie-Claire Balabanian, lead vocalist of Chicago-based ethereal rockers Speck Mountain. Traversing the mellow vocal styles of Margo Timmons and Hope Sandoval, Balabanian paints each song with a sweet and sincere vocal brush burgeoning with anima and attitude. Add in the spacey jangle of Karl Briedrick’s guitar and the mournful wash of Kate Walsh’s keyboards and you have the recipe for a glorious work of downtrodden pop magic. Speck Mountain’s latest release, due March 17, 2009 is Some Sweet Relief; it brings new life and vibrancy to the world of moody, introspective pop music.

Shame On The Soul opens the album on the spindly legs of Briedrick’s plaintive guitar while Balabanian comes in over the top sounding like a cross between Timmons and Stevie Nicks. Balabanian and Briedrick are co-story tellers here, with Briedrick handling the unspoken or unspeakable on his guitar. You’ll understand once you hear it. The song is stunning in its simplicity and stark beauty. I Feel Eternal is one of the more optimistic sounding songs on the CD; the hopeful guitar lead soaring through a gentle reverb that suggests a dreamlike quality. Balabanian meets this with a pragmatic and sonically gorgeous vocal performance that may be the best on the CD. Some Sweet Relief has a very repressed blues feel to it that is buried deep in an Americana/Folk arrangement.

Dreamlike qualities abound on Backslider, built on the laconic keyboard of Walsh and ethereal, wordless vocals. This serves as an introduction to Backsliding, a striking piece of sad beauty. Balabanian is the queen of all she surveys here, and rings every bit of pernicious melancholy from the song she can manage; Other highlights include Twinlines and Sister Water.

Speck Mountain is an immensely talented group of musicians pursuing a sound that has to be done near perfectly in order to succeed. The sort of melancholy, ethereal pop music created by Balabanian, Briedrick, Walsh, et. al. can die a slow death for many reasons, but Speck Mountain make you want to travel the back roads of sullen, downtrodden pop with them. Some Sweet Relief is pop alchemy at its finest, creating golden moments for your listening pleasure. Expect Speck Mountain to be with us for some time to come.

Rating: 4.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Speck Mountain at www.myspace.com/speckmountain. Some Sweet Relief is due out March 17, 2009. Keep checking Speck Mountain’s MySpace page for availability information. Also note that keyboardist Kate Walsh has departed the band since the recording of Some Sweet Relief, and so there is a new keyboardist, Claire “Cub” Haley, as well as a new drummer, Christopher Dye.